Today we woke up at around 8AM because yesterday we were exhausted from a full-day trip to the GREAT OCEAN ROAD and arrived back at the hotel after 9PM. And today, we had planned to go on another day trip outside the city after buying a day trip to PHILLIPS ISLAND to see the PENGUIN PARADE. However, since the penguins come up from the sea to the shore at dusk, today’s tour didn’t start until 1 pm. That means we still had some time in the morning to walk around and explore on our own before boarding the bus.
After getting ready and showering, we left the hotel around 9 o’clock in the morning to walk to Queen Victoria Market, which was not far from our hotel – only a 10-minute walk. On our first day in Melbourne, which was a Wednesday, the market was closed. So, Friday was a great opportunity for us to explore this iconic market of Melbourne. Queen Victoria Market is located north of the city center, similar to Chatuchak Market in Bangkok. It is an open-air market covering an area of up to 6 acres. The market is divided into several distinct zones such as clothing, household goods, fresh produce, meat, dried food, and more. The prices of goods at this market are much cheaper compared to those at supermarkets, making it a popular place for locals and tourists alike to find affordable food and souvenirs. Queen Victoria Market is open from 6AM to approximately 2PM (and until 5PM on Fridays) and is closed every Monday and Wednesday.
The Clothes and Apparels Zone in Queen Victoria Market
Inexpensive household equipment could be found here
Fresh Vegetable is also available
The butcher is looked very tasty 🍖
The corner for cheese lover 🧀🧀🧀
Seasoning and condiment are all-in-one store 🧂🧄🧅🫚
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We walked around and enjoyed ourselves at a place where we bought small and inexpensive souvenirs. There were various items to see, including kilos of meat and fresh herbs such as coriander. What caught our attention were the many types of cheese available at reasonable prices. For Cheese Lovers, I thought they couldn’t resist for sure. Later, we strolled along Flinder Street and bought some snacks for the trip because we will come back to the city around 9PM.
The Flinder Street at noon
The free tram line no. 35
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At around 12.40PM, we arrived at Federation Square, where we had boarded the Gray Line coach for the Great Ocean Road tour the day before. To our delight, the coach was already waiting for us. After handing over our tickets to the staff, we chose seats in the lower section near the driver’s seat. There were not many people with us today, only about 20 passengers. Our guide for the day was Uncle Jeff, who served as both the driver and narrator for the tour.
At 1PM, the coach was departed. Along the way, as we passed by different places and cities, Uncle Jeff explained their history and general characteristics for us to know. What was important that day was that it had just stopped raining as we traveled, giving us a rainbow to see almost throughout the journey. It was a beautiful view of lush green fields alternating with a rural atmosphere where the rainbow swept across the gray sky. It was truly a magnificent sight to behold. 🌈
At about three o’clock in the afternoon, we arrived at the bridge crossing to Phillips Island, and we stopped to visit our first destination of the day, Churchill Island – Heritage Farm. The island, which spans approximately 125 acres, is a small part of Phillips Island and can be reached by driving across a bridge. The area of Churchill Island has been developed into a European-style garden and farm by the Phillip Island Nature Parks (PINP) and is open to tourists and the public for visiting.
Uncle Jeff informed us that it would take about 45 minutes for us to visit Churchill Island. The atmosphere on this island was a combination of sheep and cattle farms, with beautiful sea views and green grassy fields. Furthermore, the rain had just stopped, and we were lucky enough to see a rainbow as a stunning backdrop. We were extremely fortunate to witness such beautiful scenery with a rainbow like this, and we took so many pictures.
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After we had walked around and taken beautiful photos of Churchill Island, we returned to our coach around 3.45PM to continue our journey and get up close to the koalas at the Koala Conservation Centre. Before we got on the coach, Uncle Jeff gave each of us a ticket and reminded us to show it at the Koala Conservation Centre if we wanted to buy souvenirs there, as it would give us a 10% discount for being with Gray Line. 🙂
The Koala Conservation Center is located about a 15-minute drive from Churchill Island. We arrived at around 4PM, and Uncle Jeff gave us about 45 minutes to see the koalas up close here (because we had to go see the Penguin Parade at sunset, and by then it was already starting to get dark). The Koala Conservation Center is part of the Phillip Island Nature Parks, a research and conservation center that allows tourists to observe koalas living in the treetops. The koalas are separated into different zones, with both male and female koalas in each zone. The strict rule here is no loud noises and no flash photography, as this could startle the koalas. To see the koalas here, we had to slowly follow the recommended path and keep an eye out for the koalas on the tree branches. It was the closest encounter with koalas we had ever had.
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The sleeping Koala…..So Cute 🐨
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Other than Koala, we could see wallabies too
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We spent about 45 minutes walking around Koala Conservation Center after Uncle Jeff gave us plenty of time to explore. In addition to the koalas we saw here, there were also wallabies, which we call “little kangaroos,” hopping around in the conservation center.
At around 5 PM, we got into the coach to travel to the highlight of the day, which was the Penguin Parade, where we could see the penguins waddling out of the sea and returning to their burrows at dusk. It only took us about 15 minutes from the Koala Conservation Center to Summerland Beach, located on the western end of Phillip Island. We arrived there at around 5.15PM, just as the sun was setting. Uncle Jeff told us to stay there until 7.15PM to watch the penguins return home and gave us each a ticket to enter the main building of the Phillip Island Nature Park. We had dinner at the restaurant inside the park, but the choices were limited and quite expensive. It’s recommended to bring your own simple food like sandwiches or hot dogs. After taking care of personal matters, we headed to the beach, where there were amazing seats for tourists to sit and watch the penguins up close.
The phenomenon of the Penguin Parade occurred every day during sunset after the penguins left their nests in search of food during the day. These penguins, which are the smallest breed in the world, reside on Phillips Island. The most important rule when viewing the penguins at Phillips Island is that no photography is allowed, with or without flash, in order to prevent startling the penguins. If they become frightened, they will not return to the beach. Once we took our seats, we waited for the sun to disappear and the sky to darken. Soon after, we began to see the penguins emerge from the sea in groups, with multiple groups appearing at once. It was difficult to choose which group to focus on, but in each group, the lead penguin would appear first and wait for its team to gather on the beach before leading them back home. We observed about 25 groups and watched for almost an hour until the final group of penguins returned to shore.
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The penguins are coming back home 🐧
(Photo from : https://nomadsworld.com/phillip-island-penguin-parade-day-trip)
They are running in the group….amazing
(Photo : https://www.greatoceanroadtour.com.au/afternoon-phillip-island-penguin-parade-tour)
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This was the closest and most abundant experience we had ever had with penguins. As we walked back to the park’s building, we even saw some penguins walking under the same path we walked on. Each penguin was adorable, and some would call out to their friends when they reached home while others ran as fast as they could to catch up. It was a heartwarming experience.
After we watched the penguins, we still had about 15 minutes to spare, so we took a walk to check out the souvenir shops before heading back to the coach. The souvenirs here were reasonably priced and interesting, so we ended up buying 1-2 items. Then, we headed to the coach on time as Uncle Jeff had arranged, to make our journey back to Melbourne, which would take approximately 2 hours.
At around 9PM, we arrived at Federation Square. Uncle Jeff had offered to drop us off at our hotel, but the weather was pleasant that day; it wasn’t raining, it wasn’t too cold, and it was our last night in Australia. So we decided to stroll around Federation Square and take in the sights of Melbourne on that beautiful evening. It was a Friday night, and the place was bustling with people, but it wasn’t too crowded, and we could walk around comfortably. We walked from Federation Square to our hotel, which was about 2.5 kilometers away. Along the way, we passed by souvenir shops and some food supplement stores, which is called “Chemist”. We made a mental note to visit these shops the next day to buy some souvenirs before our flight back home in the night.
Today was another day of fun and happiness for us, and we added another chapter to our life experience by exploring the beautiful nature on one of the most gorgeous islands in Australia. We also got to experience the closest encounter with koalas and penguins, which was an unforgettable moment of our lives. This made us realize that seeing things with our own eyes can be so fulfilling that words cannot describe the feeling accurately. 🙂
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Written by : SHIPY SIWARIT TIASUWATTISETH
Shipy-Ship 